Coalition for Affordable Energy

Front GroupAstroturf OperatorHigh activity

Ratepayer framing; ad buys in the Southern Tier

Binghamton, NYFirst tracked October 2, 2020

Runs the “your bill will go up” message track and pays the speakers who deliver it. An amended 990 disclosed $46K to an outreach consultant who testified in six towns as an unaffiliated resident.

Free-market absolutistsFossil incumbents

Recommended engagement strategy

Map the group's real membership geography and brief local press on the out-of-county admin overlap.

Astroturf Operator profile: Manufactures the appearance of local consensus. Expose the out-of-town infrastructure.

Open counter-measure playbook

Hearing appearances

Logged in minutes

Counties active

Tioga, Broome

Projects opposed

Solar & storage dockets

Funding received

$640K

2 traced inbound edges

Funding given

$152K

3 traced outbound edges

Arguments logged

104

Top: Property Value Claims

Where They OperateCounties with a tracked filing, appearance, or monitored channel, and the specific project dockets involved.Counties with a tracked filing, appearance, or monitored channel, and the specific project dockets involved.

Counties

Tioga6 ev.
Broome4 ev.
Oneida5 ev.
Niagara12 ev.
Seneca7 ev.
Chenango4 ev.

Project dockets

Berkshire Storage ProjectTioga Co.
Deerfield SolarOneida Co.NO DOSSIER
Cambria SolarNiagara Co.NO DOSSIER
Ovid SolarSeneca Co.NO DOSSIER

View on county map

What They ArgueArgument classification from filings, testimony transcripts, and monitored posts. Counts are statements, not documents.Argument classification from filings, testimony transcripts, and monitored posts. Counts are statements, not documents.

Property Value Claims30 · 28.8%
Home Rule / Preemption25 · 24%
Ratepayer Cost21 · 20.2%
Fire / Battery Safety17 · 16.3%
Visual / Aesthetic11 · 10.6%

Most-repeated claim

“Homes within two miles lose 30% of their value.”

Who They FundTraced grants, dues, contractor payments, and campaign contributions. Amounts come from 990 filings, grant letters, and NYS BOE data.Traced grants, dues, contractor payments, and campaign contributions. Amounts come from 990 filings, grant letters, and NYS BOE data.

Inbound

Outbound

Open in funding network

Activity Log7 entriesChronological record assembled from hearing minutes, local law filings, 990 disclosures, and monitored channels.Chronological record assembled from hearing minutes, local law filings, 990 disclosures, and monitored channels.

Written comment filedMay 28, 2025Submitted a comment package on Deerfield Solar citing ratepayer cost and setback adequacy.
Mobilization detectedMay 21, 2025Turnout post shared 187 times across Tioga and Broome County groups.
Local law draftedMay 9, 2025Circulated setback overlay text to the Berkshire board; matches model legislation distributed statewide.
Op-ed placedApr 24, 2025Near-identical op-ed ran in two Tioga County weeklies within four days.
Channel monitoredApr 2, 2025Linked Tioga County group added to the monitor; 2133 members in its first month.
Coalition letter co-signedMar 18, 2025Co-signed a letter to the Broome County legislature opposing ORES preemption under Article VIII.
First tracked activityOct 2, 2020Entered the monitor via a Tioga County record referencing Deerfield Solar.

Aliases & AffiliationsAlternate names seen in filings and the organizations this actor is formally or functionally tied to.Alternate names seen in filings and the organizations this actor is formally or functionally tied to.

Known aliases and filing names

CAFE
Affordable Energy NY

Affiliations

State Policy Network
NYS Petroleum Council
Duane Pettigrew

Network position

Classified as a front group in the three-tier model, with 5 traced funding edges.